One-of-a-kind Crossley on the market

An ultra-rare Crossley with a locally-coach-built body is on the market, some five years after it appeared in Unique Cars magazine.

The 1934 machine is believed to have been one of just ten rolling chassis built in this spec, and this one was shipped out to Australia when it was new.

Its first owner fitted a big and boxy Martin & King body to it which, according to its current owner Alf Wilson, was hideous. He commissioned a new body, starting with a custom-made ash frame, that echoes the lines of an SS100 Mercedes-Benz.

As for the underlying rolling chassis, the fact it’s a Crossley makes it rare enough, as the marque stopped building passenger cars in 1938. This one happens to be an ultra-rare development model: a variant of the 1933 two-litre with the much bigger 3.2-litre six fitted. Originally dubbed the 3.0-litre Sports Saloon, just 10 are thought to have been made and this is the only known survivor.

After around 50 years of ownership, Wilson has decided to part with the machine, which looks like it might have just rolled out of the coach-builder’s showroom. He can be contacted on tel 61 2 6076 2553.